Monsters in Hanyang
I had no confidence. No confidence to compete with them.
Eori had been acting strange since yesterday. She'd left without a word when I received my award, hadn't shown her face even when I took home the prize box from the Ramunae contest, and today she hadn't waited for me in front of the seodang. No matter how much I racked my brain, I couldn't figure out why she was behaving like that. I hadn't done anything to upset her, and I'd stuck by her side the whole previous day, not giving the eldest young master any chance to make a move.
I retraced yesterday's events in my mind as I walked. But I wasn't heading home—I was going to Kim Jin-sa's house. Because the eldest young master had gone home with his father yesterday, I'd missed my chance to ask questions. Instead, I'd come directly to inquire about the Crown Prince and the people around him.
The further I went, the more houses I saw with tiled roofs not just on the buildings but even on the walls. I spotted people riding horses here and there, and every time one passed, I bowed my head in greeting. After about five or six such greetings, I arrived at Kim Jin-sa's residence. It had been days since I'd been carried here injured.
Standing before the closed front gate, I rang the "doorbell" with my voice.
"Anyone home?"
"...Who is it?"
A response came a few seconds later. I spoke plainly to the man beyond the gate, holding nothing back.
"Uh, I'm Kim Si-jin from Hwacheok Village. I've come to see your eldest young master."
Clack, creak. The gate opened right away. Dol-soe poked his head out through the gap.
"You mean the eldest young master?"
"Yes. Is he busy, by any chance?"
"Oh, uh, come on in first."
"Thank you."
Dol-soe, who greeted me, seemed quite flustered. And rightly so—this was the first time I'd ever come to Kim Jin-sa's house on my own.
Following him inside, I took in the expansive courtyard of the Kim Jin-sa household. A single tree stood in the center, partially obscuring the sarangchae beyond it. The women's quarters were probably further inside, but Dol-soe led me straight to the sarangchae and showed me to a room.
I'd barely sat down when the eldest young master burst in with a bright smile.
"Hahaha! Si-jin! Did you miss me?"
"Hello, Eldest Young Master."
I stood to greet him. The eldest young master, beaming as if in the best mood imaginable, sat down in front of me and gestured with his hand, not letting his smile fade.
"Haha! Sit, sit! What brings you here?"
"I have something I'd like to ask."
I sat back down, exchanged a few pleasantries, and got to the point.
"Have you ever met the Crown Prince?"
"Hm? A few times. Are you curious about him?"
"Yes. What kind of person is he?"
"Hmmm..."
The eldest young master pursed his lips in thought, tapping his knee lightly as he sat cross-legged, then gave his answer.
"He's a monster."
"Pardon?"
"Haha. I know it's disrespectful, but he's no ordinary man. Indeed, not just anyone can become king. Hahaha! Si-jin, do you know who invented Hangul?"
"I believe it was His Majesty the King."
"Not wrong. But he didn't do it all alone. The Crown Prince contributed too—and he's the one who invented punctuation like quotation marks."
Figures. We use them in the modern world too.
"What about his character?"
"He's profoundly enlightened. Whether yangban, public officials, or lowly commoners, he judges solely by ability, elevating the talented regardless of status. That's how Jang Young-sil rose to office."
Ooh, Jang Young-sil. Now it really feels like I'm in Joseon. No, wait—that's not the point. He uses people based on merit alone. Not entirely a good thing. It also means he discards the incompetent, no matter their background. For someone like me, who majored in Korean literature without much ambition, it was the worst possible news.
"Haha. And you know, Hanyang is full of monsters. Not quite on the Crown Prince's level, but there are so many brilliant people."
"Is Yi Sun-ji one of them, by any chance?"
"Oh! You know of him! Yes! Professor Yi Sun-ji of Jip-hyeon-jeon is incredibly learned. He could have risen to higher office many times over, but he chose to stay at junior rank 6 to teach future scholars."
Junior rank 6? Joseon ranks go up to 9, so... like a grade 6 civil servant?
"And you can't overlook Jang Yong-sil, assistant magistrate of the Military Armory."
"Pardon? Didn't you just call him Jang Young-sil, the clerk?"
"Hahaha! Similar names, right? There's a funny story about it. The Crown Prince summoned the craftsman Jang Young-sil, but an attendant misheard and brought Jang Yong-sil instead. What a fateful mix-up!"
"What does he do?"
"Know what a jochong is? Doesn't seem to have reached here yet. It's a firearm that can shoot down birds in flight. Even a child could topple the mighty Xiang Yu with one shot—terrifying stuff."
That made another modern transmigrator confirmed, but it didn't stop there. Yi Sun-ji, the first professor at Jip-hyeon-jeon, training future teachers. Jang Yong-sil, who invented the jochong and other firearms, earning his freedom from commoner status. Choe Gong-son, who developed gunpowder over three generations starting from Choe Mu-seon. Hwang Chi-sin, eldest son of Hwang Hui, serving in the Ministry of Finance. Jeon Nae-heon, second son of Royal Physician Jeon Sun-ui, teaching at the medical academy formerly known as Hye-min-seo.
I had no confidence. No confidence to compete with them.
An education system linking village schools, seodang, and Sungkyunkwan. Microscopes revealing microorganisms. Disinfectants called "red medicine." A well-established currency system. Medical officers stationed in every province. Everything I'd benefited from involved them. To rise in this world, I'd have to compete with these monsters. Compared to them, I was no different from any ordinary Joseon native. My skills? Blowing bubbles, playing knucklebones, origami—that was it.
"..."
"Si-jin? What's wrong?"
"Y-yes? Did you call me, Young Master?"
"You alright? Your face looks pale."
Not pale—reality just hit hard. I'd thought there were maybe two or three. That the Crown Prince had done it all. But one man couldn't modernize Joseon alone.
"Si-jin. You taking your medicine properly?"
"Y-yes. I took it this morning."
"Good. It's the royal prescription for you. Finish every dose."
"Yes, I will."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"...Nothing else to ask?"
Nope. I'd gotten answers to everything; no more topics left. Sensing the awkwardness, the eldest young master cleared his throat unnecessarily and changed the subject.
"Eaten yet?"
"Not yet."
The seodang had candy to spare but not meals. So I usually wrapped up after morning classes. The eldest young master, who hadn't attended village school, grinned like it was perfect timing.
"Then eat here with me."
"I'll eat with Mother at home."
"Haha, no need for that. I brought something delicious from Hanyang."
"...What is it?"
I sat back down, abandoning my subtle attempt to stand and leave. The eldest young master smiled triumphantly, as if he'd expected it.
"Si-jin. Ever heard of kaari?"
"Ka... kaari?"
"Yes. Kaari. A dish from a far-off land across the sea. So spicy and intensely flavorful, once you taste it, you never forget. Sniff—smell that? The pungent aroma filling the house."
I focused my sense of smell at his words. A faint scent I'd missed amid my swirling thoughts now tickled my nose. This spicy, intense smell—could it be...!
"Ka... curry?"
"Oh! You've heard of it! Yes, kaari! Hahaha! When I first tried it in Hanyang, I was blown away! Ahahaha!"
A land across the sea—India?! Wait, hold on. Curry? In a Joseon without chilies yet? Their flavor base was just soy sauce, soybean paste, and salt. They had sansho pepper for a numbing spice, but it couldn't touch the clean heat of cheongyang peppers. And now curry was loosening tongues with its tension?
"Si-jin. They say in its homeland, kaari is eaten by hand, without utensils. Like this."
The eldest young master mimed scooping from thin air and bringing it to his mouth. But I was too shocked about tasting curry to notice much.
"How about it? Won't you join me for lunch?"
Lunch was the old word for the midday meal, but that wasn't the point now.
"Don't worry about portions. Plenty for the sarangchae kids and servants too."
"N-no, that's fine. I'll eat at home."
My excitement over curry had my butt twitching to stay, but it halted. The "sarangchae kids" meant the brats receiving tutoring here—the pack led by that punk Kim Hui-un who tormented me.
"Haha, come on. Don't you want to try kaari?"
Ugh! But... curry! It's curry! Who cares about those little shits? They hadn't messed with me once since I beat those beggar kids! Wait—hold up. There's another guy I hate in this house?
"Uh, by any chance... where is Master Kim Jin-sa?"
"Hm? Need to see Father? Heh. Tricky. He's away and won't be back till evening."
What?! No Kim Jin-sa?! That made it like shoving a curry-laden table in my face! Sh-should I just eat? Ah! Right! Mom!
"Sorry, I didn't tell Mother I was coming here."
"Worried about her alone at home? I'll send someone."
Even as I scrambled for excuses, the eldest young master shot them all down. In the end, I was fated to eat curry here...!
"No, thank you."
For some reason—maybe because my urgent business was done—Eori's dark face flashed in my mind. I steadied my wavering heart and met the eldest young master's eyes firmly.
"There's something weighing on me. I won't be able to eat until it's settled."
"Hmm. Mind if I ask what?"
"Sorry. It's personal; I can't say."
"Something to do with that girl from yesterday??"
"?!"
"Hahaha."
He laughed as if he'd known I'd be shocked wide-eyed. Then he nodded knowingly.
"I see. Go on, then. We'll have kaari next time."
"Th-thank you, Eldest Young Master."
Ding! Ding! Ding! Bell tolls echoed from beyond the closed paper door. From the grandfather clock on the veranda of the inner quarters' main hall.
The eldest young master smiled contentedly as it chimed twelve times.
"Hmm. Someday, this sound will echo through Hwacheok Village too."
Even in this advanced Joseon, grandfather clocks weren't common. They were rewards for top seodang graduates like him.
"I hope so."
"Hahaha! It surely will."
Thoughts of battling those monstrous rivals choked me, but the eldest young master, laughing innocently without knowing, was even more suffocating.